NZXT Issues H1 Product Recall Over Safety Concerns

Update 11/28/2020 7:00pm PT: NZXT has released a statement regarding the issue with the H1 over at the company's blog.

Update 11/28/2020 2:00pm PT: It would appear that the one of the screws that hold the PCIe riser cable in its place is the culprit. One Redditor was greeted with smoke when powering up his system for the first time, while another Redditor had an encounter with flames.

Central Computers previously shared a message from a NZXT representative that reportedly confirms the speculation around the screw. Apparently, the retailer has removed the statement, but an archive of the communique is still available.

The NZXT representative's message reads as follows:

We do need to halt sales due to the fact that a top screw has caused 1 case screw on the case to spark and possibly catch fire. We do have a fix for this, but we would need to halt sales for this product until we are able to get you guys the screw per units that you do have. If you have already purchased the unit and are experiencing the issue, please contact the NZXT customer service team (https://www.nzxt.com/customer-support) directly to get the screw and receive a tutorial on how to fix the issue. Our first step today was to put a full stop on all sell through of this model and quarantine any inventories in the channel. We will be reworking all units to quickly put them back into a saleable position. The modification is a very simple replacement of one single screw; but something that we need to do nonetheless.

Original story:

The NZXT H1 has turned into a popular choice for PC builders putting together compact systems. However, NZXT has discovered that a small percentage of the cases might present a safety issue to its consumers.

Through a rather short Reddit post, NZXT has urged H1 owners to reach out to the company's customer service team through the h1support@nzxt.com email. The case manufacturer didn't provide any explanations as to what the cause of the recall could be. Notwithstanding, the issue might not be a major one since NZXT is preparing a simple repair kit that H1 owners can install on their own.

Unlike other mini-ITX cases, the H1 comes with a 650W SFX power supply and a custom-tailored 140mm AIO liquid cooler. We suspect that the issue may be related to one of those parts.

One Redditor claimed that the problem could be attributed to a tiny screw that specifically secures the PCIe graphics card riser mount. The screw is reportedly shorting out the system and causing it to not work properly. The same Redditor shared his experience that his system would automatically reset if there is any pressure on the portion of the case where the graphics card is housed. 

NZXT's statement is as follows:

NZXT has identified a potential safety issue with H1 cases and we are working with the US Consumer Products Safety Commission along with the proper global authorities to notify our customers and provide them with a solution.

While we believe this issue only impacts a small percentage of cases, we are playing it safe and have paused sales of the H1 and are developing a simple-to-use repair kit that H1 owners can install themselves without having to ship their cases anywhere.

If you'd like more information about this matter, please contact our customer service team so they can assist you by emailing h1support@nzxt.com

Thank you and we apologize for the inconvenience!